National Organic Week was from Monday 7 September to Sunday 13 September 2020, and was all about learning and knowing where your food comes from. To celebrate National Organic Week, we had partnered with the Macarthur Centre for Sustainable Living to bring our residents a range of workshops to assist with getting started in growing some of your own food, cooking food at home and dealing with food waste. Dates for National Organic Week 2021 are to be confirmed.
Do you rent or live in an apartment? Try container gardening!
This clip provides some great advice. Costa chats with a couple who have mastered container gardening.
Trying a herb garden in containers?
Easy herbs to start with include chives, mint, parsley, sage, oregano and rosemary. You can cut and use the herbs when you need them, that way they don't sit in your fridge and wilt or go off.
What are the best container vegetables to start with?
| Lettuce |
It is easy to grow and there are so many varieties to choose from. Try a range of different types and grow a salad right there on your balcony. |
| Radishes |
These are a great beginner crop and can be ready within 4-6 weeks. Radishes provide a great peppery taste to your salads. |
| Baby spinach and silverbeet |
Easy to grow and great for chopping off the leaves you need, as you go. New leaves replace the ones you take, providing you with fresh vegetables whenever you need it. |
| Beetroot |
If you don't want a glut, plant smaller amounts of seeds a few weeks apart, to keep the crops going longer. |
| Potatoes |
These just need a deep container, with not a lot of space. Nothing tastes as great as home grown potatoes. |
| Carrots |
Similar to potatoes, carrots need depth to grow, but not a lot of space. Try some different varieties - did you know some carrots are purple? |
| Eggplant |
These grow great in a container. The plant with need staking to keep it held upright. |
Use your kerbside organics service well
Did you know that when you place your garden prunings, grass clippings, flowers, leaves and bark, small branches and weeds into your green lidded bin it is taken from your kerbside and transported to a local organics facility where it is made into compost? This compost is then sold to be used back in our gardens again. This service forms part of what is called a circular economy, where the organics are composted and returned back to the garden, providing vital nutrients for the plants to re-use and support their growth. This process removes the need for chemical based fertilisers and removes our garden organics from landfill. Remember: When using your garden waste bin to keep out waste that does not belong. Not sure what can go in your green lidded bin? Check what can and cannot be placed in your garden organics bin.